But he has found his path blocked by Rooney, Van Persie, Danny Welbeck, Javier Hernandez and Juan Mata, a similar player signed from Chelsea for £37.1 million in January.

He has been asked to play wide. On the pre-season tour of the United States he was used as a deep-lying midfielder. Neither position gets the best of his obvious talent, his intelligent movement and creative instinct.

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It's not that he hasn't played well enough. Or that he wasn't given enough chances to impress. It just hasn't worked out.

It will work out for him somewhere. He's got too much talent for that not to be the case. It just won't be at United. At least, not now.

Cleverley has found himself in a similar situation.

He got fans excited with his performance against Barcelona during the 2011 pre-season tour and against Manchester City in the Community Shield.

He started the first four games of the season and would have continued in the first team had it not been for an ankle injury.

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But by the time David Moyes took over last summer, he looked like a player short of confidence. Playing out of position and doubting everything that had come naturally to him when he first broke into the team.

He's had the same problem this season. So worried about making a mistake that he ends up making more than most.

It's a highly pressurised environment at United, especially for an academy graduate. Cleverley looks like he needs a change of scenery. A club where the spotlight might not be so intense.

Kagawa and Cleverley are only 25. There's still time for them to rebuild their careers somewhere else.

But some players, however talented, don't fit in at certain clubs.

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It doesn't mean they're bad footballers. No. Just better suited to another manager's ideas. A different club where they'll play more regularly and in their preferred positions.

When any relationship breaks up, it's easy to point the finger. To blame the player, the manager or the club.

But sometimes it's best for everyone to go their separate ways. Safe in the knowledge that it just wasn't meant to be.